Iron and Lace
by PatheticallyKingly
Summary: Gajeel Redfox is bored with his court. It's as simple as that. However, when he notices a certain blue haired maid, things start to get a bit more exciting for the grumpy royal. Royal AU and all that. Have at it.
1. Chapter 1

**Because I owed eqqlo (on deviantart and tumblr) something like this about a year and a half ago but I never got around to it. 'cause I'm scum. Yeah. Prince!Gajeel and Maid!Levy. This is gonna suck so bad. Holy shit I'm sorry in advance. **

**Based around her piece here. **

~X~

1: The Court

The grand iron banisters reflected the warm lights of the torches, giving the great hall in which he sat a homely feeling. Orange light seeped in through the stain glass windows that lined the ceiling, enhancing the mood even more. The orchestral arrangement in the center of the court had picked a soft, lilting tune to match it. People were strewn about the hall, soft conversation and merry laughter mixing in an unexpected harmony.

Yet to Gajeel, the court may have just as well been empty.

He sneered at nothing in particular from his throne, the false laughter and gossip grinding on his nerves. If he had his way, he'd be sparring with his knights right about now, perhaps even doing something, dare he say, productive. But no, a prince must keep appearances; even if that appearance was the visage of a growling dragon, in his case. A look that hardly went unnoticed by the party goers. He could feel the nervous glances being cast his way. To these people, he was nothing more than a scornful royal; somebody that could throw them in a dungeon if he felt they looked at him wrong.

The idea entertained him, but he would never do anything of the sort. He was simply a grump, not a sadist.

He paused a beat, his sneer grew sharper when he realized he had just referred to himself as a grump. Gods above he hated being shoehorned into these parties.

He eyed the clock embedded in the iron tower in the center of the court, it's hands approaching midnight. He let out a sigh of relief as the clock struck 12; he could finally put an end to his internal suffering. He stood up, adjusting his red coat as he cleared his throat. The noise carried across the court, all eyes focused directly on him. He took a breath, no doubt about to say something regal and princely.

He ripped a piece of iron off his throne and popped it in his mouth, chewing it as if it were candy as he sat back down. "Get the fuck out."

To his credit, he said it as regally as one could.

The crowd stared in awe, some who were familiar with such gatherings shuffling out nervously, while others who were relatively new to the Redfox court stood still. They were completely stricken at how some snot nosed brat had just told them so crassly to-

Gajeel stood up and swallowed, another piece of iron in his hand. "Pardon me, it seems some people didn't hear me," he cleared his throat again, "I said...get the fuck out!" He roared, his eyes turning wild.

And with that, any sense of composure was gone as people attempted to pile over each other to exit the hall. Some leaving their gaudy shoes behind, while others attempted to carry out snack trays in the chaos. Gajeel grinned at the scene; sometimes, he didn't mind his birthright too much.

~X~

She was as shocked as anybody else at how the Prince had ended the party. She had no idea the person she'd be serving would be so...unprincely. She had many other words to describe his attitude, but she was a maid. It wasn't her place to make such judgement on royalty.

Even so, Levy couldn't help but mutter, "What a jerk," under her breath as she and the other maids and butlers began cleanup.

She was gathering up the silverware and plates that hadn't been stolen in the rush when she felt a presence behind her. Thinking it was just another maid, she minded her own business, gathering up as many plates as she could. The sharp tug on the back of her uniform informed her otherwise. She dropped the plates she was holding, the court ringing with their destruction. She almost yelled at her aggressor, but when she turned around, she held her tongue.

It was a party goer who had yet to leave. He was a small, portly man, only barely taller than her. If she had to guess, he was probably a Lord or Baron of the sort. She crossed her hands in front of her, putting on her best fake smile. "Is there something I can help you with, sir?"

The portly man said nothing, simply grabbing her by the wrist as he attempted to drag her with him out of the hall.

Now, Levy was a maid, but she wasn't about to stand for something like that. She ripped her arm out of the man's grasp, causing him to fall flat on his face. She stopped where she was and resumed her previous position, her fake smile becoming more strained with her anger. "Is there something I can help you with, sir?" She couldn't stop the annoyance in her tone, not that she cared at this point though.

She glanced around her, hoping her coworkers somehow intervene to get her out of the situation. To her dismay, they all acted like nothing was happening. Some even had a look disappointment. This confused her, but her attention was quickly pulled back to the portly man.

"You bitch," he slurred, "Do you know who I am? I am the Duke! How dare you embarrass me in such a way!" He glanced to the guards next to the door as he pointed at her. "Guards! Get this wench out of my sight!"

The guards didn't move though. In fact, nobody moved. The only person who actually did anything was the sneering prince who had somehow strolled his way up next to Levy and placed his elbow on her head, leaning on her slightly.

Gajeel picked his teeth, not paying the slightest attention to the quivering maid underneath him or the surprised man in front of him. When he finally dug a piece of iron out from between his gums, he looked at the man, a bored look on his face. "So tell me, piggy: what's the name that follows after that title?" He flicked the iron towards the small man, the flecks sticking to the center of his increasingly sweating forehead.

The man stammered, but whatever he was about to say was cut short. Gajeel picked him up by the collar of his suit effortlessly. He brought the man close, his eyes narrowing. "Too slow, piggy." He punched the man, sending him flying through the court doors which the guards had just opened.

Gajeel wiped his hands on his coat as he looked down at Levy. "And you," he started, causing Levy to jump slightly, "you did good." He patted her on the head before exiting out the door, stopping to tell the guards something. He pointed at the twitching man near on the floor in the entry way and then pointed back toward Levy, a rather manic grin on his face. The guards nodded, one dragging the man while following Gajeel, while the other approached her.

To say she was confused was an understatement. Had she not acted disobediently toward a guest? She thought for sure that she was going to be clapped in irons, but no. She got a pat on the head from the prince and told she did good. "What kind of court is this?" she muttered.

The guard snapped her out of her reverie, his demeanor cold and unchanging. "Miss, starting tomorrow, you are to be Gajeel-sama's personal attendant. You are to report to his chambers tomorrow morning at 10 AM sharp."

~X~

**And that was really just the set up. I have more, but I feel it would crowd if put more here. So, I'll diverge it into a relatively short story rather than a shot. Here's to my first time writing Gajevy, yeah? I hope I didn't fuck up too bad.**


	2. The Work

**Shitty internet and desert life, let me tell you.**

**~X~**

2: The Work

It was a simple routine, really. Show up to his room by 10 AM to make sure he was awake, gather his amenities that lay about the room and put them in the proper area for the laundry team, and just all around make sure he didn't kill anybody or himself throughout the day. Of course, Levy balked when she first heard the rules. Prince Gajeel was a man of royalty, was he not? The incident from the party may have been uncharacteristically violent and crass, but wasn't that simply because the so called 'Duke' that was harassing her was an impostor?

When she made her thoughts known to the head maid, all she received was a slightly unnerving smile and a rather dubious surgical mask.

When she entered his room the next day, she quickly understood that the head maid's smile was one of pity. If the prince hadn't been soundly snoring on his bed, she would've shrieked from the smell alone. It wasn't a bad smell, nothing disgusting of the sort, but oh did it sting. The sharp tinge of metal, a smell akin to coppery blood, and a slight overlay of something definitely more musky hit her full force. The piles of little nuts and bolts, some older than others, were scattered around the room. Upon some of them were shirts and small clothes of all sorts, most being plain white with flecks of red or rips.

Levy put on the mask before she began her approach. She gingerly stepped around the piles of metal, picking up the more put together shirts and tossing them in the designated hamper near the end of the room from where she came in. Luckily for her, the room wasn't all that grand and it the curtains were already pulled, so traversing it wasn't as trifling as the initial impression gave. When she came to his bed side, she took a breath and pulled down the mask, grimacing as the wave hit her again. She had a feeling that waking him up would be more difficult than-

Her train of thought was cut short as Gajeel's snoring stopped, his breathing becoming more rushed as he sniffed the air, his eyes still closed. When he stopped, he sat up, his hair far from the sleek pony tail it was the night prior. He yawned as he scratched his belly, his eyes squinting open as he looked at Levy.

"Ah, it's the chibi maid." He grumbled, another yawn escaping him as he stood up in front of her. He grabbed one of his shirts off of the metal piles and slipped on as he nonchalantly kicked the others that were in his way as he made his way toward the door. "Do me a favor and grab a fresh towel from one of those laundry guys, would ya? I'll be at the baths." And with that, he left.

To say Levy was bewildered was an understatement. Not only was her face still red from seeing the prince so scantily clad, but she ended up just standing there without saying a word! And chibi maid? Where did he get off calling her that out of nowhere? Sure she may be small and-

She mentally slapped herself as she exited the room after tossing the rest of the scattered clothes into the hamper. She had a job to do and she couldn't let her personal qualms get in the way of it. He hadn't said anything expressly rude to her and those were his personal chambers. She should've expected something of the sort when she was told to wake him up. She would just have to get used to his crassness, it would seem.

"Ah, miss, how'd you do it?"

Levy stopped as one of the laundry attendants handed her the towel she asked for. The look he was giving her was so full of wonderment that it was making her rear back a bit. Still, that didn't stop her from being confused. "Do what, exactly?"

The boy reacted like she had just slapped him. "Why, wake up the prince of course! You set the record for shortest time in waking the sleeping dragon!"

She was put off a bit by that nick name. Was Gajeel really so bad about waking up? "I just walked in; it seemed that he was already waking up." Her tone expressed her genuineness, as she smiled at him slightly. She thanked him for the towel before left. What a strange little boy, she thought.

The boy nodded, a sly smile spreading across his lips as Levy hurried off, knowing that the head maid was about to make hit ten jewels richer for winning their bet.

**~X~**

The situation at the baths went better than she expected. She didn't have to feel the embarrassment from accidental exposure, as Gajeel had just begin bathing when she arrived. She knocked on the door and let him know that she was placing a pair of clean clothes and the towel he asked for just outside. She received a grunt in return. She was about to leave, before Gajeel spoke up again.

"Wait," he said.

And so she did. She stood there, unsure of what to do with herself.

"Uh, Gajeel-sama-"

"Just Gajeel, shrimp." He chortled, seemingly amused at her squirming.

She felt a vein pop on here head at 'shrimp.' "Very well, Gajeel." She tripped over it somewhat, but had no trouble otherwise. "What would you have of me right now?"

A pause. She stood there a moment longer, but to no avail. She huffed to herself. This was ridiculous. "If that is all, sir, then I will take-"

The door opened, and Gajeel leaned out, half his physique for all to see. He held out his hand, as if awaiting something.

Levy, for her part, did a good job of not screaming. However, as the prince continued to hold out his hand to her, the water steaming and dripping from his body, she couldn't help but take glances as she brought her hands to her chest, her face reddening. "I-I'm sorry, G-Gajeel-sama, but as a maid I don't offer that kind of service!"

The was a different pause in the air as a beat passed, Gajeel's face going blank for a moment before he cracked a shit eating grin, a 'gihi~' escaping his lips. "The towel, chibi maid! It's at your feet!"

Levy's entire body made a gesture akin to "Ah!" as he face became that much redder, theoretical steam coming from her. She handed the towel to him stiffly, unable to look him in the eye. Even when he closed the door, she could hear him howling with laughter. She sunk to the floor against the wall, bringing her knees to her chest and burying her face in them as she began to scream mentally.

The head maid, who had been viewing the scene since Levy's arrival, patted her on the head as she moved on, a devilish grin on her face. The little brat from laundry was going to give her back her ten jewels plus interest for winning this wager.

**~X~**

The rest of the day went relatively smoother. Levy followed Gajeel on his daily routine, whether it included meeting with visiting dignitaries (and by meeting she meant having to break up the fight that eventually ensued between the two), him scaring off potential marriage candidates, or training with the soldiers. The bath scene was still fresh in her head, which prevented her from looking him in the eye the entire day. Gajeel, however, thought nothing of it. Given his nature, she expected to at least receive a couple of digs throughout the day, but none came.

Or so she thought.

She was walking with him back to his room, the moonlight spilling through the windows as they traversed the corridor. When they reached the door, Levy bowed to him, curtsying a bit as well. "If that will be all, Gajeel-sama?"

He crossed his arms, frowning "You're really that bothered by this morning, aren't ya, shrimp?"

She froze. "No, sir, I simply-"

"Stop that. That's annoying."

She frowned. "Then what would you have me-"

"Chibi, if you call me 'sir' one more time, I'm going to-"

It came out before she could stop it. An annoyed grin split across her face. "Going to what, sir? Throw me in your own personal dungeon for proper maids? Shall I go prepare the bondage and lace stockings, Gajeel-sama?" It had been nothing but 'chibi' that or 'shrimp' this the entire day, and the names were getting to her. She knew she was small, but being reminded with such mundane nicknames matched with his crassness had gotten to her. Not to mention she was still emotionally spent from the bath incident. As such, she made sure to to put emphasis on the 'sir' and the 'sama.' She honestly didn't care what he did to her for her insubordination at this point, but she braced herself for the inevitable smack she expected, nonetheless.

However, all she received was a tender pat on the head. Gajeel smiled at her, as genuine as smiles with Gajeel got. "Good work today, Levy."

She felt her heart skip a beat at that. But she was also confused; she didn't recall telling him her name, so when did he-

Gajeel backed up into his room and bowed to her slightly. "My apologies." A sudden 'gihi~' escaped from him as he looked up and grinned. "However, if next time you wish to join me for the bath, all you have to do is ask."

Levy's face went red with embarrassment as she reared back to take a swing at him, before the door closed quickly in her face, causing her tiny fist to meet wood instead. She stormed off after that, muttering to herself about stupid doors and, more specifically, a stupid Gajeel, failing to notice her now missing maid bonnet.

Somewhere of to the shadows to the side, the laundry boy and head maid looked at each other bitterly, before each handing ten jewels to the head butler. Things were about to get a lot more interesting in Castle Redfox.

**~X~**

**This is probably rife with fuck ups and I probably mischaracterized horribly but oh fucking well. I'm in the desert. It's hot. I'll probs come back to fix it up later. But probably not.**


End file.
